Colditz: "Senior American Officer"

It is 4 March 1974, and time for another episode of Colditz.

Three high-ranking American prisoners are delivered to Colditz, including now-Major Phil Carrington (Robert Wagner) - who had escaped with Pat Grant at the end of Season 1. Rather than be placed with the British prisoners, the Americans are kept in isolation. They receive special privileges. Suspicions grow that at least one of them may be working for the Germans.

"Senior American Officer" is a neat little exercise in paranoia. It does not take long to discover the purpose behind the American's special treatment - the Gestapo has been attempting to get the names of the Hungarian resistance contacts with whom Carrington and his fellow officers met prior to their capture. This leads the British officers on a mole hunt: someone is clearly feeding information to the Germans - but who?

The Pull List: 16 August 2017, Part 3

Abram is a cosmonaut who experienced something indescribable in deep space, and who has now returned to Earth as a seemingly all-powerful and inscrutable superhuman. The character starred in three exceptional miniseries over recent years, the most recent of which saw the entire world transformed into an alternate reality where the Soviet Union ruled the planet.

That crisis has been averted, and this special prologue issue sees Abram re-acquainting himself with the various Valiant heroes and finding his niche among them.

The writing is a little dry and narration-heavy, but then it is just a prologue issue and not the start of Divinity proper.

The real star here is Renato Guedes, whose beautiful painted panels and characters have such a wonderful richness and depth. It really is stunning artwork. This issue feels a little unnecessary - it teases rather than kicks off - but it's certainly great to look at. (4/5)

Divinity #0. Valiant. Written by Matt Kindt. Art and colours by Renato Guedes.

Under the cut: reviews of Batwoman, Descender, Kill the Minotaur, Poe Dameron, and Secret Weapons.

Doctor Who: "All Roads Lead to Rome"

It is 23 January 1965, and time for another episode of Doctor Who.

The Doctor (William Hartnell) and Vicki (Maureen O'Brien) come face to face with the Roman Emperor Nero (Derek Francis). Barbara (Jacqueline Hill) is sold as a slave into Nero's household. Ian (William Russell) is bound to a slave galley on the open ocean. Will the four travellers ever reunite with one another?

"All Roads Lead to Rome" is a superb balancing act, managing to not only juggle three separate storylines with equal attention and entertainment value but to also juggle three distinctive tones. Barbara's experience getting sold through a slave market is straight-up drama, Ian's galley adventures are the stuff of a classic adventure story, while the Doctor and Vicki's Roman encounters play out like comedy. That it all weaves together as smoothly as it does it really quite admirable.

The Pull List: 16 August 2017, Part 2

I am just going to guess that writer/artist Rich Tommaso likes European comics, particularly ones involving anthropomorphic animals like those of Lewis Trondheim. Spy Seal is pretty much exactly what it purports to be: a comic book about the exploits of a spy - who also happens to be a seal.

It is all there: the high panel count, the thin-line art style, the pastel colouring. It almost nails the entire aesthetic, yet feels just a little bit separate at the same time. The art is not quite as well developed, and some of the dialogue feels a trifle too long and stiff. As an opening attempt, however, it is amusing enough and certainly has plenty of character and personality.

In the end it's the charm that wins you over. It is a relatively predictable story, but it's also a comic book about a polo-neck wearing seal being invited to join MI:6 in fighting Russians - all told with anthropomorphic animals. That's rather cool. (3/5)

Spy Seal #1. Image. Story and art by Rich Tommaso.

Under the cut: reviews of Cloudia & Rex, Green Arrow, Rat Queens, Silver Surfer and Superman.

Star Trek: The Next Generation: "Attached"

It is 8 November 1993, and time for another episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

The Enterprise arrives at the planet Kesprytt to negotiate an unprecedented situation. One civilization on the planet, the Kes, want to join the Federation. The other, the Prytt, are a xenophobic isolationist regime who want nothing to do with their the Kes or the Federation. When Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Crusher (Gates McFadden) attempt to beam down to begin negotiations, they are hijacked by the Prytt and imprisoned. When they attempt to escape, they discover they have been implanted with devices that enable them to read each other's thoughts.

'Jean-Luc, there's something I've been meaning to tell you.' Ever since "Encounter at Farpoint" the relationship between Picard and Crusher has dangled over the series like a Sword of Damocles, always threatening to crash down and change their friendship forever but always simply hanging there. With the series in its final year, The Next Generation finally tackles the Picard-Crusher romance head-on - with mixed results.

The Pull List: 16 August 2017, Part 1

Talk about a mixed bag. Dark Nights: Metal has been teased and prologued by DC Comics for months - years, if you believe writer Scott Snyder - and now that it is here I am almost incapable of describing how I feel about it. It certainly represents Snyder at his most gleefully unbridled. No idea, it seems, is too 'out there' or off-the-wall for this miniseries.

The series introduces an alien invasion from the 'dark multiverse', one thousands of years in the planning and always intended to use Batman as its way through into the DC Universe (calculate that one yourself). It incorporates the Justice League turning into, well essentially Voltron, as well as returning characters like Red Tornado, a wingless Hawkgirl, and the Sandman.

No, no that Sandman. The 1940s superhero might actually have made sense. No, this first issue caps off its insanity with Batman confronted by Daniel of the Endless, protagonist of Neil Gaiman's widely acclaimed fantasy series The Sandman. DC has already dragged Watchmen into its big over-arching line-wide story arc; now it seems no Vertigo characters are safe. I for one can't wait for the arrival of Jesse Custer, King Mob and V by the time this whole crazy escapade is complete.

There are bit in this issue I adored. There are bits that made me want to scream. How do you review a comic book like that? (3/5)

Dark Nights: Metal #1. Written by Scott Snyder. Art by Greg Capullo and Jonathan Glapion. Colours by FCO Plascencia.

Under the cut: reviews of Batman, Doctor Who: The 11th Doctor, Spider-Men and Uncle Scrooge.

Atom: The Beginning: "Birth of the Mighty Atom"

It is 15 April 2017, and time for the first episode of Atom: The Beginning.

College students Hiroshi Ochanomizo and Ummataro Temma work together in the attempt to create a fully self-aware robot. Their latest attempt gets an unexpected road test when a fire breaks out at a street parade.

To me, and I suspect to more than a few others, Osamu Tezuka's Astroboy is one of the cornerstones of Japanese animation. It was hugely influential, internationally popular and has been periodically revisited over the decades with various remakes. Its historical significance puts an extraordinary amount of pressure on any new iteration of the story, since there is a weight of history and reputation with which original anime productions do not have to cope. Sadly, from this first episode at least, Atom: The Beginning buckles under the pressure.

The Pull List: 9 August 2017, Part 2

For those who came in late: every 90 years a group of young humans suddenly manifest supernatural powers and are reincarnated as Gods. This "Pantheon" then shines brilliantly for two years before they all die. The only constant element appears to be Ananke, an immortal and hugely powerful figure who turned out to have been murdering the Pantheon every cycle to avoid "the great darkness". This time around the Pantheon got there first, Ananke is dead, and now what the great darkness is is rapidly approaching. No one can agree on what to do, one of the Pantheon - Sakhmet - has murdered a bunch of people, and is hiding out from her fellow gods with Persephone, who was a fan of the Pantheon before being reincarnated as one of them.

Sure it sounds a little confusing, but that's what you get if you come in at issue #30. If you have never read The Wicked + the Divine before, go hunt down the first few trades: it's a regular four-to-five star comic book and is a worthy read.

This issue is dominated by Dionysus and Morrigan having a conversation in the dark. It sounds a little dull but it's an important conversation. This really all feels like a calm before a storm, and with the characters all getting developed up to a critical point it suggests that the next few issues are going to be pretty apocalyptic. I do think we're reaching a point where, after 30 serialised issues, it's becoming difficult to keep the characters and the storyline all set in my head with month-long gaps between instalments. A re-read of earlier arcs may be in order before long. (4/5)

The Wicked + the Divine #20. Image. Written by Kieron Gillen. Art by Jamie McKelvie. Colours by Matthew Wilson.

Under the cut: reviews of Action Comics, Batgirl and the Birds of Prey, Harbinger Renegade, Hulk and Ms Marvel.